Emily’s here!
And she’s super psyched to climb some ice. We started with Whitemans. Its a five kilometer ski in- then a half hour “technical” hike up a gorgeous narrow canyon that makes you think you ate the wrong kind of mushroom in your eggs. Little ice flows abound between tight rock faces- until suddenly you look up to the right- and there lies a simply gorgeous flow.
It has little overhanging bulges and caves and looks quite menacing at first glance. However, more menacing were the six people we saw just after noticing the falls. One party was just starting up. We knew we were in for some form of waiting as we passed six pairs of poles on the approach- so we were prepared for disappointment- but this was a war zone. There were three parties climbing at once. One party was climbing Redman’s to the right- another party was putting up a line imbetween- and then another was on Whitemans- and they were creating a cacophony of action- ice and rock fall interspersed with screams of the barfies, or yelps of fear. Somehow, Em and I survived the waiting though- and luckily the party on Whitemans was super speedy- we hopped on and went for the ride.
It was a beautiful climb with running water flowing just behind the ice which forms into crazy mushrooms and big gaping holes. The climb was gymnastic- although made much easier by the two parties just before us. It was an amazing feature to be able to flow up. We even got back to our car before dark. Tomorrow we will try our luck in the Ghost.
Hi Julia! Looking good Emily - smack that ice!